


Different

by ThatRavenclawBitch



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-31
Updated: 2017-05-31
Packaged: 2018-11-07 09:59:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11056605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatRavenclawBitch/pseuds/ThatRavenclawBitch
Summary: From the angst sentence starter meme: “What makes you think I’ll be any different this time?” Takes place post season 6 finale.





	Different

“What makes you think I’ll be any different this time?” he asked, his voice panicked. “Every other time you’ve believed in me, I’ve let you down.” 

Belle was waiting for this, the inevitable second guessing Rumple would do. They had their son back, they were together, they could finally be a family and have their happy beginning, and he was already terrified of messing it up.

It had been mere hours since Gideon had returned to them as an infant. They’d come home to the pink house, put Gideon down to sleep, and retreated to the living room to finally talk. 

There had been conversations over the past few weeks. They’d spent so much time together working on a way to save their son. But those conversations had mostly revolved around Gideon. There was still so much to discuss, so much that needed to be said in order for their relationship to move forward. And that’s what Belle wanted. She wanted her husband back. Seeing him fight so hard for his family had only served as a reminder of the many facets of the complicated man she loved. He wasn’t all darkness just like he wasn’t all light. He was a beautiful balance of the two. But Rumple was still afraid he would hurt her again. 

Belle shook her head, taking Rumple’s hands in hers and gazing up into his eyes with utmost conviction. “You faced the darkness, Rumple. You won. You didn’t need to be the Savior to be a hero.”

“Today,” he agreed. “But what about tomorrow? What about next week? What about the next time I feel powerless to protect you or Gideon? You know the kind of man I am, one who makes all the wrong choices.”

She’d said as much herself, hadn’t she? That Rumple was a man who made wrong choices. But tonight he’d made the right one. Even when he stood to lose everything because of it, he still did what was right.

“But you didn’t,” she insisted. “You could have taken the easy way out today, Rumple. You could have sided with your mother when she promised you power and love. You could have listened to the voice in your head that tried to offer you the same. But you didn’t. You did what was right because it was right. Don’t you see?”

Rumple shook his head, his dark eyes wide. “See what?”

Belle smiled up at him, brilliant as the sun coming out on a cloudy day.

“The very fact that you’re worried about this proves that you’ll make the right choice again. Rumple, you put our family first, above anything else. I believe you’ll always choose us, that in your own way you always have tried to do what you thought was best for us. And as long as you’re honest with me and let me in, I’ll help you.”

“You will?” he looked so nakedly hopeful that it was all she could do to keep from kissing him right here and now. 

“When I said it was our happy beginning, I didn’t just mean with Gideon,” she said. “I’m not going anywhere, Rumple. You’re my husband, and I love you. I want to be your wife again, in every possible way.“

Rumple shook his head, tears forming in his eyes. “I want that too,” he said. “More than anything.” 

Belle couldn’t hold back anymore. She reached up on tiptoes, claiming Rumple’s mouth, really kissing him for the first time since that day on the docks in the Underworld. His mouth opened for her immediately, his tongue twining with hers. Their heartbeats seemed to speed up together, beating in unison, like they were one person. Her arms wound up around his neck, her fingers scratching at his scalp. It was the first time she’d kissed him since he cut his hair and she missed the length she used to grab on to when they kissed. Rumple’s hand cradled the back of her head, pulling her against him as he deepened the kiss, filled with true love and heartache and happiness all mixed up in one breathtaking moment of pure bliss. 

Moments or hours later they pulled apart, Belle resting her head against Rumple’s chest and listening to the steady beat of his heart beneath her cheek. Rumple wound his arms around her waist, pressing kisses and words of love to the crown of her head.

“I want you to break my curse,” he said finally. “The only way I can make sure that my decisions are completely my own is to lose the curse, for good this time.”

Belle pulled back to look at him, startled. It seemed like only yesterday he was telling her he loved the dagger, that he wouldn’t give it up for anything. How much could change in such a short period of time.

“Is that even possible?” she asked. A curse was no longer a curse when the afflicted wanted it, and Rumple had wanted his curse so very badly for so long. 

“It’s more complicated than a simple true love’s kiss,” he said. “But I think together we could find a way. Will you help me, Belle?”

“I don’t need you to break the curse for me,” she said. If this was what Rumple wanted, she would support him 100%. But it had to be because he wanted it. She knew ultimatums didn’t work. There was a time when she thought he couldn’t truly love her as long as he was cursed, but those days were gone. She loved Rumple regardless of if he was cursed or not. “I trust you to do right by our family no matter what. But if you think it’s for the best, I will do everything I can to help.”

Rumple nodded, pulling Belle back against his chest and holding her close. “I’m tired of being the beast.”


End file.
